EU let Uzbekistan get away with murder

Clearly more than the massacre of hundreds of unarmed people in Uzbekistan. And more than the knowledge that many others are currently being tortured by Uzbek authorities into confessing wrongs they may not have committed. After Uzbek government forces had killed hundreds of demonstrators in Andijan on 13 May, the EU, the United Nations and the US repeatedly called for an independent, international inquiry into the massacre. But they have failed to use any meaningful leverage to press the Uzbek government to accept one.

EU foreign ministers met last week in Newport, Wales, yet failed even to raise this important issue. As a result, EU credibility, already deeply undermined by the Andijan atrocities, is now completely shattered. On 13 June, EU foreign ministers set a clear deadline for the Uzbek government to accept an international inquiry “by the end of June 2005”. Failing that, they threatened to suspend their Partnership and Co-operation Agreement, which is conditional on Uzbekistan’s respect for human rights and the rule of law. That deadline passed and nothing happened. But then again, in the EU’s world, a deadline is a moveable feast and threats are frequently empty. Indeed, on 18 July, ministers simply chose to appoint a Special Envoy for Central Asia and asked him to visit Uzbekistan “as soon as possible”.

Predictably, President Islam Karimov and his government have not found time to meet the EU’s envoy and have not budged an inch regarding an independent, international inquiry.

Now, it would seem, the EU has chosen to wait even longer, to see what the results will be of Uzbekistan’s own inquiry. That should be obvious from the outset: a leopard does not change his spots. A cover-up is being meticulously orchestrated to produce enough evidence to support the government’s preposterous version of events: that 13 May was an uprising by terrorists responsible for almost all the killings.

At the same time, the Uzbek authorities are ensuring that there are no witnesses left to tell the true story to the outside world. Anyone even remotely associated with the events of 13 May is being hauled up for interminable interrogations and even torture by the Uzbek authorities. Dozens of investigators and police seem to be working round the clock coercing confessions from these individuals about their supposed involvement with Islamist extremists and about arms they allegedly used during the protest. Beatings are commonplace.

Human Rights Watch has interviewed numerous witnesses and all, independently, recount the same horror. Their testimonies suggest that hundreds of Andijanees have already been detained, tortured, threatened and harassed by the Uzbek forces.

So false testimonies are being beaten out of people round the clock while the EU just sits and waits for the results. How long will EU ministers wait before they decide to act?

Holding the EU’s rotating presidency, the UK must provide the leadership necessary to ensure the suspension of the EU’s Partnership and Co-operation Agreement with Uzbekistan. It failed to do so in Newport, but it is still not too late.

The EU should also make it clear to Karimov and his associates that continued stonewalling of an independent international investigation into the Andijan events and gross violations of human rights will only trigger further EU punitive measures – such as an arms embargo, visa bans and freezing of assets for Uzbek government officials.

It is unacceptable that EU ministers should allow Uzbekistan to get away with massacring their citizens and burying the truth through yet more murder and torture – especially when respect for human rights is one of the EU’s fundamental principles. Let us hope that in their October meeting EU ministers will finally take credible action. Any further delay would be inexcusable.